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Black-capped vireo no longer considered endangered

In the latest turn in the divisive saga involving rare Central Texas species, the population of a songbird has recovered enough for it to move off the endangered species list, U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials announced Wednesday.

The lifting of habitat protections for the black-capped vireo, long a bulwark against development, is unlikely to open long-restricted areas to construction or road building, given the number of other species that remain protected. But property rights groups and some birders greeted the proposal as good news for a tiny bird.

Nearly 30 years ago — with their nests overrun by another bird species and their shrubby habitat destroyed under the hooves of goats — black-capped vireos were declared endangered… Read more from MyStatesman.com

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